NFL has three unbeaten teams left
SAN DIEGO, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- Only three unbeaten teams remain in the National Football League and they all happen to be from the same division.
The San Diego Chargers remained perfect Sunday by ending the long run of the New England Patriots, the Oakland Raiders are still unscathed thanks to a quick start against the Tennessee Titans and the Denver Broncos will attempt to keep their record unblemished Monday night when they visit the Baltimore Ravens.
Another series of bizarre contests dotted the NFL landscape Sunday with three of them producing at least 70 points and two going into overtime. One game ended with a last-second field goal and another ended when a chip-shot field goal attempt with 10 seconds remaining failed to make it through the uprights.
It was also a tough day for quarterbacks. St. Louis' Kurt Warner was injured and Pittsburgh's Kordell Stewart was at least temporarily demoted.
Miami, New Orleans and Carolina all lost for the first time this season to join New England as teams that almost, but not quite, made it past September with a perfect record.
In San Diego, LaDanian Tomlinson rushed for a career-high 217 yards, including scoring runs of 37 and 58 yards, to lead the Chargers to a 21-14 victory over the Patriots. The loss snapped a 12-game winning streak for the Patriots (3-1), including last season's playoffs.
The Chargers (4-0) snapped a 10-game losing streak against the Patriots -- the longest active NFL streak -- and are 4-0 for the first time since 1994, when they started 6-0 and reached Super Bowl XXIX.
In Oakland, rookie Phillip Buchanon and Terry Kirby returned punts for touchdowns as the Raiders scored 21 points in the first 5:24 and coasted to a 52-25 victory over the Titans.
Rich Gannon threw four touchdowns for the Raiders (3-0), who led by as many as 31 points in the third quarter and tied a club record for points set most recently against Carolina on Dec. 24, 2000.
The Raiders blitzed the Titans for three quick scores and needed to run just one offensive play to do it.
Oakland's Jerry Rice set a career record for yards from scrimmage, breaking Walter Payton's mark and reaching 21,281. In addition, Charles Woodson returned an interception for a touchdown for the 11th time in his career, a league record, and established a new mark in interception return yardage with 1,139.
A Denver victory over Baltimore would set up a meeting of unbeatens next week when the Broncos entertain San Diego. Oakland's first meeting with one of its division rivals will come Oct. 20 at home against the Chargers.
In Sunday's other games:
-- Brett Favre threw a late touchdown pass and Green Bay held on to beat Carolina, 17-14, when newly-signed Panthers kicker Shayne Graham missed a 24-yard field goal attempt with 10 seconds remaining.
-- Rookie Billy Cundiff kicked a 48-yard field goal on the final play of the game gave the Dallas Cowboys a 13-10 victory over the winless St. Louis Rams. St. Louis quarterback Kurt Warner suffered a broken pinky and will likely be out at least a month.
-- After replacing ineffective Kordell Stewart, Tommy Maddox threw a touchdown pass late in regulation before moving his team into position for Todd Peterson's 31-yard field goal in overtime, giving the Pittsburgh Steelers a 16-13 victory over the Cleveland Browns.
-- Brian Dawkins became the first player in NFL history to have a touchdown reception, an interception, recover a fumble and register a sack in the same game, carrying Philadelphia past Houston, 35-17.
-- Brad Johnson threw for 277 yards and three touchdowns to send Tampa Bay coasting past Cincinnati, 35-7. Cincinnati has started 0-4 for the third time in four years.
-- Justin Lucas returned an interception 38 yards for a touchdown with four seconds left in the first half to swing momentum and the Arizona Cardinals went on to down the New York Giants, 21-7. New York Coach Jim Fassel elected to try a long pass rather than run out the clock before halftime and it backfired.
-- Rookie Joey Harrington completed 20 of 35 passes for 265 yards and a touchdown and Jason Hanson kicked four field goals to lead previously winless Detroit to a 26-21 victory over New Orleans.
-- Drew Bledsoe set an NFL record with his fourth career overtime touchdown pass, throwing a 26-yarder to running back Travis Henry as the Buffalo Bills defeated the Chicago Bears, 33-27.
-- Fred Taylor ran for 142 yards and a score and Stacey Mack had three touchdown runs to give the Jacksonville Jaguars an easy 28-3 victory over the New York Jets.
-- Trent Green passed for a career-high five touchdowns, including three to Tony Gonzalez, to lead Kansas City to a 48-30 victory over Miami.
-- Shaun Alexander scored five times in a 45-point first half to carry the Seattle Seahawks past the Minnesota Vikings, 48-23.
Europe wins Ryder Cup
SUTTON COLDFIELD, England, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- A perfect strategy and series of upsets helped make Europe victorious and Tiger Woods useless at the Ryder Cup Sunday.
With the best of the European players sent out early in the day by Captain Sam Torrance, his team gained points from five of the first six singles matches Sunday and took back the Ryder Cup from the United States, 15 1/2-12 1/2, when Irishman Paul McGinley made an eight-foot putt to halve a thriller with Jim Furyk.
One pairing after Paul Azinger's amazing bunker shot kept the United States alive, McGinley gave the Europeans their third victory in the last four Ryder Cups, bringing about a celebration from the partisan crowd at The Belfry.
The Americans, who are 24-8-2 in the all-time series, lost the Cup they won three years ago at Brookline, where they erased a four-point lead on the last day.
This time, the teams were tied after two days for the first time since 1991 and the United States was considered a favorite after losing the singles session just five times in the history of the event.
Facing a squad with six of the world's top 12 players, Torrance sent out his big guns early and watched them win four of the first six matches and halve another to get within two points of victory.
Fist-pumping Swede Niclas Fasth later earned a half point against a valiant Azinger and McGinley did the same with Furyk in one of the day's upsets.
Before the decisive half points, unheralded Welchman Phillip Price recorded the day's biggest surprise, cruising to a 3 & 2 victory over world No. 2 Phil Mickelson. Price is 118th in the World Golf Rankings.
While Torrance sent his best players out early, U.S. Captain Curtis Strange saved his for last. The move ended up backfiring as the series of upsets rendered Woods' match meaningless.
"Sam, I think he gambled at the start, but it paid off," Strange said. "They did what they had to do."
Baseball set for playoffs
BALTIMORE, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- The Major League Baseball regular season came to an end Sunday with the New York Yankees wrapping up the last award that was up for grabs.
Rondell White hit a three-run homer and Jason Giambi added a two-run shot as the Yankees clinched home-field advantage throughout the playoffs with a 6-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.
Mike Mussina was sharp over five innings for the Yankees, who finished with the best record in the American League (103-58).
With a loss to Baltimore and win by the Oakland Athletics, the Yankees would have had to play a makeup game at home against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Monday to decide the top seed in the AL.
The division series get underway Tuesday with Minnesota visiting Oakland in a day game, Anaheim playing at New York at night and St. Louis at the defending champion Arizona Diamondbacks for a late-night start.
San Francisco will get started Wednesday in Atlanta.
Loren Roberts captures Texas Open
SAN ANTONIO, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- Loren Roberts earned the biggest paycheck of his 21-year career Sunday along with a chance to win an even bigger one.
Roberts made four birdies over a five-hole stretch on the back nine and pulled away at the Texas Open for a three-stroke triumph, his first on the PGA Tour in more than two years.
He fired a bogey-free 6-under-par 64 at the LaCantera Golf Club for his eighth career victory and first since the 2000 Greater Milwaukee Open.
Roberts birdied the final two holes Saturday, then became the 13th third-round leader in the last 15 years to win the tournament.
Gordon claims another NASCAR race
KANSAS CITY, Kan., Sept. 30 (UPI) -- Jeff Gordon held off rookie Ryan Newman following a restart with three laps remaining Sunday to win the NASCAR Winston Cup Protection One 400 for the second year in a row.
Winless through the first 24 events of the season, Gordon recorded his third victory in the last six races and the 61st of his career. He started 10th in a Chevrolet Monte Carlo at Kansas Speedway.
Newman finished .618 seconds behind Gordon in a Ford Taurus and was followed by Rusty Wallace, Joe Nemechek and Bill Elliott.
Mark Martin's bid for an elusive Winston Cup championship suffered hit a setback after the points leader went to the garage with about 20 laps left. He had been running in the top 10.
Rookie Jimmie Johnson, who finished a lap down in 10th place, climbed atop the standings for the first time in his brief career.
Barrichello gifted Formula One race
INDIANAPOLIS, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- Rubens Barrichello received payback from Ferrari teammate Michael Schumacher, accepting the gift of a checkered flag Sunday in the United States Grand Prix.
Schumacher, who wrapped up his fifth F1 championship five races ago, pulled over coming out of the 13th and final turn and allowed Barrichello to edge ahead in a side-by-side finish as Indianapolis Motor Speedway president and CEO Tony George waved the checkered flag.
In the May 12 Austrian Grand Prix, Barrichello was ordered by Ferrari management to pull aside just short of an apparent victory and allow Schumacher to win. That initially led to some bitter feelings, but with the world championship wrapped up, Ferrari management returned the favor to Barrichello.
Barrichello finished .01 seconds ahead of Schumacher and wrapped up second place in the standings.
Serena wins eighth title of 2002
LEIPZIG, Germany, Sept. 29 (UPI) -- Serena Williams became the WTA Tour leader in titles this year with a 6-3, 6-2 trouncing of sixth seed Anastasia Myskina of Russia in Sunday's final of the $585,000 Sparkassen Cup.
The 21-year-old American captured her eighth tournament victory of 2002, one more than her older sister Venus. Serena already took her sister's Wimbledon and U.S. Open crowns, as well as the French Open championship - all coming over Venus.
Williams has won 15 straight matches and 36 of her last 37, with her only loss since mid-May a quarterfinal setback to Chanda Rubin at Los Angeles in July. She arrived in Germany fresh after winning the Princess Cup in Tokyo last week.
Chicago evens MLS series
NAPERVILLE, Ill., Sept. 30 (UPI) -- Ante Razov scored both goals Sunday night as the Chicago Fire rallied to force a decisive third game in their first-round playoff series with a 2-1 triumph over the New England Revolution.
Game 3 will be Wednesday night in Foxboro, Mass. The winner of Game 3 will face the Columbus Crew in the MLS Cup semifinals.
